McCain Ducks on Birth Control Coverage
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio -- This delightful exchange between Sen. John McCain and a reporter took place aboard the Straight Talk Express bus during the trip from Huntington, W. Va. to the town hall meeting in Ohio. One of McCain’s senior advisers, Carly Fiorina, caused the senator a bit of discomfort when she brought up the inequity of insurance coverage for impotence drugs for men, but not birth control for women. Here is the unedited transcript, from the pool report:
Q: Earlier this week, Carly Fiorina was meeting with a bunch of reporters and talked about it being unfair that insurance companies cover Viagra but not birth control. And -
McCain: I certainly do not want to discuss that issue. (uneasy laughter)
Q: But apparently you’ve voted against (McCain laughter continues)
McCain: I don’t know what I voted –
Q: Voted against coverage of birth control, forcing health insurance companies to cover birth control in the past. Is that still your position?
McCain: I’ll look at my voting record on it, but I have, uh, (5 second pause) I don’t recall the vote right now. But I’ll be glad to look at it and get back to you as to why, I don’t -
Q: I guess her statement was that it was unfair that health-insurance companies cover Viagra but not birth control. Do you have an opinion on that?
McCain: (after 8 second pause) I don’t know enough about it to give you an informed answer because I don’t recall the vote, I’ve cast thousands of votes in the Senate. I will respond to – it’s a, it’s a (nervous)
Q: Delicate issue (McCain laughs).
McCain: It’s something that I had not thought much about and I did hear about her response but I hadn’t thought much. But I will get, I will get back to you today on it.
Q: OK.
McCain: I don’t usually duck an issue, but I’m, I’ll try to get back to you.
While we are not holding our breath for McCain to raise the issue again voluntarily -- considering how carefully McCain has courted religious conservatives, many of whom oppose even discussing birth control in school sexual-education programs -- we might not have to. Coincidentally, the McCain campaign announced today it will reach out to women voters by holding an exclusive, women-only town hall meeting Friday in Hudson, Wis. Hopefully, one attendee will read this report and pick up the birth-control mantle.
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